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News: Windsor West, Lowest Voter Turnout in the Province — Voter turnout in Windsor West as a percentage of eligible voters in the riding was the lowest in the province at 43.83 per cent. It brings no honour to the major parties which are supposed to act as primary organizations which link the citizenry to governance. Nonetheless, the number of people who voted was higher by 2,598 than in 2014. The riding contains both the University of Windsor and St. Clair College; however given that the date of the election was moved by the Liberal government from October 2018 to June 2018 there was no possibility for a large mobilization of university and college students on their campuses which could have boosted turnout in the riding. At the time of making the change the Liberals claimed that it would contribute to boosting turnout due to better weather in June. The campaign in Windsor West was an example of how the party system operates to either completely suppress the concerns of the people or reduce them to a ping pong match where concerns are used to score points against rivals. This is how the building of a new mega-hospital was used […]

News: Results in Windsor West — The riding was won by the incumbent NDP candidate Lisa Gretzky whose vote increased by 5,278 from what it was in 2014. The Progressive Conservative (PC) candidate Adam Ibrahim received the second most votes with 11,073, an increase of 5,813 from 2014 when the PC candidate received 5,260 votes. The PCs replaced the Liberals as the second party in the riding. Ibrahim presented himself as a representative of the “new PC Party” as opposed to the party of Mike Harris. The Liberal candidate Rino Bortolin received 5,762 votes compared to the 13,976 votes that went to the Liberals in 2014, a drop of 8,716. It is likely that some of those who deserted the Liberals in the riding voted NDP on the basis of trying to stop a PC majority. Bortolin had sought to distance himself from the Liberal government during the campaign, openly telling Kathleen Wynne not to come to the riding; he was better off on the basis of his own personal “brand.” In the 2014 election Liberal cabinet minister Teresa Piruzza lost her seat to the NDP candidate at the hands of the working people of the riding by 1,022 votes. […]

News: The Results in Windsor-Tecumseh — Windsor-Tecumseh is a working class riding in the heart of one of Ontario’s automotive and industrial centers. The voter turnout in the riding had been one of the lowest in the province at 43 per cent in the 2014 provincial election. This time it increased to 49 per cent, still 10 per cent below the provincial average. There were 43,179 valid votes cast. (The number of spoiled, rejected and declined ballots will not be published for six months.) The NDP won the riding with the vote for incumbent Percy Hatfield going up from 22,826 in 2014 to 25,221 — an increase of 2,395 votes. It was well known that Hatfield would likely win the riding again. The Liberal vote collapsed even further from where it stood following the resignation of Dwight Duncan, the former Liberal MPP and Ontario Finance Minister who led the charge for the McGuinty government against teachers and education workers and all public sector workers with Bill 115. This time the Liberal vote went from 5,605 to 3,513, a drop of 2,092 votes. The Progressive Conservative (PC) vote went from 5,485 to 11,675, an increase of 6,190 votes. This was 2,981 […]

News: Student Vote Results — Student Vote is run by elementary and secondary teachers in their schools. Students learn about candidates and parties running in the provincial election and then participate in a parallel vote in their schools. Some schools invite candidates to speak to students, while others have students do research on the candidates and parties prior to voting. How students participate is up to their particular school. As of 4:00 pm on June 7, province-wide some 2,166 schools had reported their election results, representing all 124 electoral districts in the province. In total, 280,691 ballots were cast by student participants. There were 268,091 accepted ballots, 7,103 rejected ballots, 2,562 declined ballots and 2,935 unmarked ballots. Student Vote reports that participation increased by more than 60 per cent compared to the 2014 Ontario provincial election. In that election, 173,072 votes were reported from 1,388 schools. Below are the results provided from Student Vote for the province of Ontario followed by those for Windsor area ridings, including the results in each participating school in these ridings. Political Party Seat Count Seat % Vote Count Vote % Ontario NDP/NPD 66 53.23% 86,564 32.32% PC Party of Ontario 45 36.29% 71,648 26.75% […]

News: Election Results for Windsor Area Ridings — Congratulations to Windsor area candidates who won tonight and a very big thank you to all of you who helped my campaign in so many ways. It was a great experience and now that the election is over, there is a lot to discuss. I invite you to continue checking this site for news, analysis and views on the election results. How to hold the new government to account is a new challenge which we can definitely tackle so long as we stay together and hold firm. This website, empoweryourselfnow.ca, will continue to post updates and reports on matters of concern so send your news, announcements, reports, photos, comments and concerns to info@empoweryourselfnow.ca With best wishes for the continued success of our work for democratic renewal, Laura Chesnik Below are the election results for the Windsor and area ridings. WINDSOR-TECUMSEH Remy Boulbol — Liberal 3,513 Laura Chesnik — Independent 863 Percy Hatfield — NDP 25,221 Mohammad Latif — Progressive Conservative 11,675 Henry Oulevey — Green 1,907 Voter turnout: 48.20 % WINDSOR WEST Rino Bortolin — Liberal 5,762 Chad Durocher — None of the Above Direct Democracy Party 435 Krysta Glovasky-Ridsdale — Green […]

News: June 7 Voting Information — Today is election day across Ontario. Polls open at 9:00 am and close at 9:00 pm. Any Canadian citizen who lives in the riding and is at least 18 years of age is eligible to vote in the riding of Windsor-Tecumseh. If your work schedule does not already provide three consecutive hours of time off during polling hours you are entitled to three consecutive hours of time off without a reduction in pay. If time off is to be given during the work day, the time is to be determined by the employer. If you have received a voter information card from Elections Ontario in the mail indicating the poll location where you should vote then you are registered and on the voters list and only need to present a piece of ID that shows your name in order to vote. If you haven’t received the card, you may not be registered to vote. You can still vote by registering at your poll location. The location where you must vote can be found using the Voter Information Service at www.elections.on.ca or by calling Elections Ontario at 1-888-668-8683. For acceptable types of ID for those […]

News: Windsor Casino Workers Ratify Tentative Agreement — June 4. Caesars Windsor workers ratified the third tentative agreement presented to them by a vote of 75 per cent after being on strike for over 60 days. The latest agreement was reached between their union Unifor Local 444 and the U.S. corporation Caesars Entertainment on June 2. The highlights of the three-year deal, according to an outline provided by the union, include the following changes from the prior tentative agreement rejected by the workers: pay raises in years 1, 2 and 3 respectively go from $0.75, $0.50, $0.50 to $0.75, $0.75, $0.25; retirement incentives, and a letter of understanding that the company has no plans to “close any existing food service outlet or eliminate/contract out any department within the bargaining unit during the term of the new collective agreement.” Ontario has 25 slots and casino locations employing some 16,800 people in food, hospitality, security and gaming. When workers defend their wages and working conditions and oppose contracting out in one location, it contributes to workers doing the same in the others. Congratulations to the Caesars Windsor workers for standing firm.

News: People’s Need for Decision-Making Power in Health Care — May 22. A coalition of social organizations held an all-candidates’ meeting at Windsor’s School of Social Work to provide a venue for candidates to address the public’s concerns on the state of health care, how funding for the system should be increased and how the system can be made to function to serve the people’s needs. The meeting was well-attended, with pointed questions and discussion coming from the audience. Speaking to the Windsor Star, Philippa von Ziegenweidt, spokesperson for Citizens for an Accountable Mega-hospital Planning Process (CAMPP) said the organizers’ aim was to make sure the public was informed about the stand of the candidates and who the candidates are. Notably, counter to the spirit of the event and the need for an informed electorate, the Windsor Star’s report only mentioned by name one NDP candidate, three Liberals and a PC, along with a passing reference to two nameless Green Party candidates. Independent candidate for Windsor-Tecumseh Laura Chesnik was also present at the meeting. Some of the most vigorous applause of the event came in response to Laura’s remarks when she reiterated that one of the biggest problems facing health […]

Windsor Casino Workers Reject Second Tentative Agreement — On May 19 workers at Caesars Windsor casino and hotel rejected a second tentative agreement with a 53 per cent majority. The 2,300 Caesars’ workers are represented by Unifor Local 444. They launched their strike on April 6 after they rejected a previous tentative agreement by a majority of 59 per cent on April 5. The workers have the support of other working people seen in donations as well as visits to their picket line and participation in public rallies. The striking workers give a variety of reasons for the latest rejection including the wage package, increasing contracting out of restaurants and services within the casino which eliminates unionized jobs, concerns over security in retirement, working conditions and the lack of respect from their employer. Pitted against the workers’ claims on the oodles of money brought into the casino through gambling and concerts are the claims of the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG), the City of Windsor, the U.S. corporation Caesars Entertainment which manages the casino and hotel, and other contracted-out enterprises within the casino. Representing these claimants, Kevin Laforet, regional president of Caesars Entertainment, after the vote rejecting the second […]

Record Number of Candidates Nominated to Contest Ontario General Election — May 19. Nominations in the 2018 Ontario General Election closed at 2:00 pm on May 17: 793 candidates are representing 28 registered political parties. In addition, there are 32 independent candidates and candidates with no affiliation for a total of 825 candidates. The Greens, Liberals, New Democrats and Progressive Conservatives all have candidates in each of the 124 electoral districts. The Libertarians have 117 candidates; the None of the Above Party 43; the Trillium Party 26 and the Ontario Moderate Party 16. Twenty other parties met the threshold of at least two candidates. The number of candidates is a record high. In 2014, there were 616 candidates representing 21 parties in 107 constituencies. Fifty-six per cent of NDP candidates are women; while 52 per cent of Green candidates, 46 per cent of Liberal candidates, and only 33 per cent of Progressive Conservative candidates are women. While the ballot lists the candidates’ party affiliation, information on how the candidates make their living is not readily available. From the ballot paper, a voter has no information as to the occupation of the candidate; whether they are a steelworker, nurse, teacher, a […]

May 17 : Nominations Close Today — Today at 2:00 pm nominations officially close for candidates in the June 7 Ontario election. Check back here tomorrow for a full listing of all candidates running in the four area ridings of Windsor West, Windsor-Tecumseh, Essex, and Chatham-Kent-Leamington.

May 15: Laura Informs Chrysler Workers She Is Running for Election — Laura went to Chrysler’s Windsor Assembly Plant to inform workers that she is running for election in Windsor-Tecumseh (see photo below). Workers readily took the flyers with several taking extra flyers to distribute inside the plant. This is not the first time Laura has gone to the Chrysler plant gates to distribute literature which supports workers’ rights.

June 7 Ontario Election: Basic Information — The Ontario general election will be held on Thursday, June 7. Nominations for candidates close May 17 at 2:00 pm. Electors can vote by special ballot at the returning office in their riding from the day after the writ is dropped, May 10, until 6:00 pm on election day. Voters may also cast their ballot at the advance poll locations noted on their Voter Information Card. There are currently 107 seats in the Ontario Legislature: Liberals, 55 seats; PCs, 28 seats; NDP, 18 seats; Independent, 2; vacant, 4. (MPPs Jack MacLaren and former PC leader Patrick Brown were both kicked out of the PC Party caucus and sit as independents). There will be 17 new ridings in the June 7 election, for a total of 124. This necessarily changes the composition of many existing ridings. In the previous election a majority required 54 seats, which the Liberals attained at that time by winning 59 seats. Achieving a majority on June 7 will require 63 seats. The increased number and reorganization of ridings is due to legislation passed by the Liberal government to align provincial ridings with changes made to federal ridings in Ontario, […]

Workers Lead Discussion on the Direction They Want for Ontario — In this election, working people are leading an effort to hold forums, panel discussions, open mics and other activities where they themselves speak about their concerns and how they think solutions can be implemented for problems they face. Photos below.

Laura Chesnik has taught for 10 years at all levels from Junior Kindergarden to Grade 8. She currently teaches Grade 1 at Giles Campus French Immersion School with the Greater Essex County District School Board. She is a member of the Greater Essex Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario and union steward at her school. Laura was born and raised in Windsor. While in high school she worked at the St. Cyril’s Slovak Centre, attending to weddings and other functions and also worked at Tim Hortons. She was the top wrestler for her weight class in Southwestern, Ontario. Laura attended the University of Windsor (Bachelor of Arts 2004) and the University of Ottawa (Bachelor of Education 2007). At U of W Laura was elected Vice-President of University Affairs of the Students’ Alliance and student Senator to the University’s Senate. She played on the varsity rugby team. To put herself through university and teacher’s college, Laura worked on the assembly line at Chrysler, at Nemak’s aluminum castings plant, at Met hospital and in Chrysler’s call centre. To finish paying off her student debt she taught university students in China. She is an active member of the Windsor Peace Coalition and of the […]

Press Release May 10, 2018 Laura Chesnik – Independent Candidate in Windsor-Tecumseh Elementary teacher Laura Chesnik will be an independent candidate in the June 7 provincial election in the riding of Windsor-Tecumseh. She has informed her peers and fellow citizens in Windsor that she is running so that the people of Ontario can put MPPs in the Legislature who actually represent what people need and are fighting for. She represents what teachers and education workers have been fighting for and is known for that. “Our fight for our rights comes head to head with government dictate in the service of private interests,” Laura says. “It’s time we end this situation and affirm the right of all Ontarians to a high quality public education. This can be done by affirming the rights of teachers, education workers and students who are directly affected by the lack of required funding and privatization.” Laura explains: “Teachers have been fighting to affirm their right to have a say over their working conditions for some time now. We faced the dictate of the Liberal government supported by the PCs to impose contracts, to strip billions out of education and use this to pay the deficit […]